180,593 Brown & Brown, Inc. $BRO Shares Bought by ProShare Advisors LLC

Key Points

• ProShare Advisors increased its Brown & Brown stake by 7.5%, purchasing 180,593 shares to hold 2.59 million shares worth approximately $157.6 million. Institutional investors own about 71% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but leans neutral: Brown & Brown has a consensus “Hold” rating and a $75.53 price target, with recent targets ranging from $73 to $83.
• Brown & Brown reported quarterly EPS of $1.07 and revenue of $1.70 billion, both slightly below analyst expectations, while revenue still grew 7.4% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.18 per share.

ProShare Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) by 7.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,587,071 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 180,593 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC owned 0.77% of Brown & Brown worth $157,553,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Continuum Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown during the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. Allied Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in Brown & Brown during the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Brown & Brown during the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Manchester Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 853.3% during the third quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 572 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 512 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Elevation Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 175.1% in the third quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 619 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares during the period. 71.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on BRO. Mizuho dropped their target price on Brown & Brown from $83.00 to $78.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on Brown & Brown in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded Brown & Brown from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Brown & Brown in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $75.53.

Brown & Brown Stock Up 2.8%

NYSE BRO opened at $69.73 on Friday. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 1-year low of $53.81 and a 1-year high of $82.57. The company has a market capitalization of $23.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.07, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 2.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The stock's 50 day moving average is $67.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.84.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 26th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.08 by ($0.01). Brown & Brown had a net margin of 17.63% and a return on equity of 13.29%. The firm had revenue of $1.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.76 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.05 EPS. Brown & Brown's quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 4th will be given a $0.18 dividend. This is a boost from Brown & Brown's previous quarterly dividend of $0.1650. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 4th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Brown & Brown's dividend payout ratio is presently 20.89%.

Brown & Brown Company Profile

Brown & Brown, Inc is an insurance brokerage and risk management company headquartered in Daytona Beach, Florida. The company helps businesses, public entities, individuals and other organizations identify, manage and transfer risk by arranging insurance coverage and providing related advisory services.

Its operations include retail insurance brokerage, national programs, wholesale brokerage and services. Brown & Brown offers property and casualty insurance, employee benefits, personal insurance, surety and other specialized coverage.

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